


Forever

by GingerGinny



Category: Hetalia: Axis Powers
Genre: Drowning, God!Matthew, Implied Sexual Content, M/M, Mentions of Death, Mentions of Drowning, This isnt very christmasy wHOOPS, Winter God AU, human!Alfred
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-12-26
Updated: 2016-12-26
Packaged: 2018-09-12 07:24:49
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,137
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/9062305
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/GingerGinny/pseuds/GingerGinny
Summary: Every winter he waited. Every winter he watched as the grass died beneath his feet, air cold enough to crystallize pumping in and out of his lungs rhythmically. But he'd stand here a thousand years, naked and shivering if need be. He'd wait here until his limbs were frozen solid and lifeless, until his lips were so chapped they bled, until his body couldn't take it and he fell to the glacial ground. Until he was frozen over again and again to the point where he was nothing but bones and memories of what warmth must of felt like. And even then- even then, he'd wait.





	

**Author's Note:**

  * For [ciralili (johnsugois)](https://archiveofourown.org/users/johnsugois/gifts).



> Merry Christmas, EJ!!!!! Hope you like this!

Every winter he waited. Every winter he watched as the grass died beneath his feet, air cold enough to crystalize pumping in and out of his lungs rhythmically. Red ears, red fingertips, eyes stinging from the harsh cold; the feeling of being so wrapped up in the frigid weather, he'd never break free.

The very air was suffocating; every sliver of exposed skin burning so cold they felt hot. Too strenuous to breath through his mouth, instead making his nose burn. It was like dying; technically, he was, the longer he stood in the snow. Outer layers of skin turning a horrifying purple and breath getting shallow because it hurt too much to breathe-

But he'd stand here a thousand years, naked and shivering if need be. He'd wait here until his limbs were frozen solid and lifeless, until his lips were so chapped they bled, until his body couldn't take it and he fell to the glacial ground. Until he was frozen over again and again to the point where he was nothing but bones and memories of what warmth must of felt like. And even then- even then, he'd wait.

“Alfred.”

Words so soft, so gentle, like snowflakes landing on eyelashes. Hushed, low, and dripping in warmth.

He parted his lips to respond but nothing came out, no noise to express how much that voice was worth waiting for.

“You waited.”

Alfred stood still as he felt the arms loop from around his back, leaning into the solid feel of Matthew's chest, hot breath on his neck. It was akin to standing in front of a blazing fire; Alfred melted into the touches, trust-falling into arms that were impossibly warm and sturdy.

“Of course I did,” Alfred breathed, his voice a whisper. _“Tu es dans toutes mes pensées.”_

“You learned.”

The softest feeling of Matthew's lips on the thin skin of Alfred's ear; unlike Alfred's, Matthew's lips were plump and soft, not dried and cracked. Not worn from wind or from being picked at, vain attempts to make his lips moist even though his mouth was dry.

“Alfred, you're cold,” Matthew dragged his lips to Alfred's neck, leaving soft kisses that Alfred could feel like fire through his numb skin. “You’re freezing.”

“Warm me up, Matthew, please,” He asked, resting his head back against Matthew's shoulder. “I waited.”

“How long?”

“Since Yule.”

His eyes were pressed shut so as not to see Matthew in his godly form; Alfred had grown up listening to stories of the God in the woods, ruthless and unrelenting with his winters. Never look upon him- he’s a demon, a monster, so horrifying that the most hardened hunters were shaken when they saw him. Never dismiss him; he isn’t a myth, and he’s not forgiving to those that make light of him. Never seek him out; You’ll get lost in the vast forest and wander until your blood is ice, and your heart is frozen.

Most important of them all, the rule taught to children old enough to walk and drilled into their heads since birth. The one rule that was the same level of importance as breathing and sleeping and eating- do not ever let him touch you. Never let him in close enough to grab you, to pull you, he’ll surely kill you- he doesn’t feel like we do.

But my God, my God could Alfred feel him. Alfred could feel him watching, touching, holding Alfred like a precious gift. Tight enough that Alfred could feel the weathered muscles in Matthew’s arms flex; not nearly enough of Matthew was against Alfred.

Of course, Alfred could say that even when they were so closely entwined they were one being. When Alfred gave his all to Matthew and let the winter god take him as he was and turn him into everything; when he went from human to something more in Matthew's arms, in the way Matthew's eyes glistened as he looked into Alfred's soul.

“So long. My Alfred,” Matthew's smile could be heard through his words, “My love.”

A shared silence where neither said breathed a word, and Matthew ran a hand through Alfred's sunshine colored hair. The human couldn’t feel the relief flowing through Matthew- his Alfred was here, waiting for him again.

“Let me warm you.”

* * *

 

The Mahogany hall always felt the same. Whether it looked the same, Alfred had yet to tell, eyes shut tight as Matthew kissed him. One kiss before Alfred opened his eyes to see Matthew blinking back- lavender eyes so peaceful, Alfred sighed.

“Welcome home.” Matthew smiled, running his thumb over Alfred’s rosy cheek. The peaceful lavender flickered as he found a scar along Alfred’s chin, dragging his nail over the uneven skin. “Who hurt you?”

“No one,” Alfred replied, “Hunting accident.”

Defrosting this time was easy to Alfred; kissing helped speed the process up. So different then when he was a boy and he dripped water all up and down the hall, shivering so violently in Matthew’s arms that Matthew thought he was having a fit. Granted, Matthew hadn’t just pulled him out of a frozen pit, breaking ice to save the young boy from a watery demise. So much unlike their first meeting-

Alfred had come to Matthew willingly.

That first time in the lake, when Alfred had strayed too far on the ice testing his bravery and plunged into the depths until Matthew ripped him from it. When he’d first seen Matthew’s face and he’d screamed so much his throat gave out. It’d taken years from then to figure out that kissing broke the horrifying facade Matthew had- but even then, Alfred found his way back.

And now, as a young man shivering in the same place he’d once screamed as a boy, he smiled.

“I thought you said you were going to warm me up?” Alfred teased, lacing his fingers into the fur of the coat Matthew wore.

Matthew smirked. He pulled Alfred in and engulfed him, kissing him up against the wall. Matthew wondered if Alfred could hear the magic humming in the walls- he’d made them sparkle for Yuletide.

“I prepared everything you way you like,” Matthew said, pressing his lips against Alfred’s browbone. “The cider, the fire- I even grew those little blue flowers you love so much.”

The Forget-Me-Not flowers were a challenge for Matthew; springtime flowers were not easy for a winter god to grow. But the thought of how pretty they’d look woven into Alfred’s hair kept him trying, and thankfully a small pot of them bloomed in the kitchen.

“Matthew-”

“And the summer squash soup; I tried my best for you, Alfred,” Part of him couldn’t believe he was pandering to a human quite this much, “But I think it’s too sweet. Kuma himself couldn’t stand the smell of it-”

“Matthew, _please,”_ Alfred gasped, tugging Matthew’s head back to look in his eyes. Not a small gesture for a human to pull a God’s hair, but Alfred didn’t let go, blue eyes swimming with want. _“Please.”_

Matthew didn’t hesitate in scooping Alfred up in his strong arms, holding the young man like he was Matthew’s bride. All the way to the grand bedroom- two staircases and three halls away.

Alfred was laid onto the bed like he was precious and delicate; to Matthew, he was. A human, _his_ human, the boy with the sunshine hair. Winter Gods didn’t see much of sunshine.

Pulling off what little clothes he was wearing, Alfred flung them across the room. He spread himself out on the warm bed, pre-heated and letting himself become cozy in the furskin blankets. He watched as Matthew disrobed himself and hung his layers up, scooping Alfred’s abandoned clothes with his.

Alfred couldn’t wait to be warm. Matthew was the ultimate warmth; no blazing fire or amount of blankets was equal to the heat Matthew poured into Alfred. Nothing quite like his skin or his hands made Alfred feel so alive, his heart beating.

Sometimes he wondered if he felt so alive around Matthew because he was a God, or if it was because Matthew _was_ the reason he was alive today. The man with hair colored like a winter sunrise and eyes the color of a tree’s snowy shadow. Skin so smooth and light it didn't feel real; free of any markings or spots.

Except the lightest of freckles on the bridge of Matthew's nose, which Alfred saw when Matthew pulled back the blankets.

“Making yourself comfy?” The God asked, snuggling into Alfred and pulling him tight.

Alfred hummed into his chest. He fit perfectly against Matthew after they'd shed their clothes. Their legs folded together and Alfred ran his hand up Matthew's back, resting on his nape.

“Very comfy.”

Matthew kneaded small circles into Alfred's hipbone and pressed his lips flat against the other's forehead. A whole year; to Matthew it was nothing, but Alfred was different each time he saw him. He had new freckles littered across his skin like wildflowers in a field, random patterns of beauty. Darker skin from the harsh sun and dry patches along his elbows and knees.

“Matthew,”

A human who made a God's heart flutter was so rare; so precious that Matthew was sure they were the only two to have ever experienced it. He loved Alfred from the first moment he saw him- a glowing ray of sun in almost never ending cold.

He smiled and marked small kisses along Alfred's hair line before acknowledging.

“I'm being sent away.”

Matthew's eyes snapped open. His fingers curled into Alfred's hair and he pulled away, staring into the bright blue.

“What?”

“The tribe- they want to offer me to the southern prince. They say I'm a strong fighter and I could bring honor by…” Alfred struggled and moved his gaze down to Matthew's chest. “By becoming his.”

Matthew's sunshine was being taken away. Taken away to be offered to a- to an unworthy prince, another _human._

“There's already plans for it.” Alfred muttered and burrowed into Matthew's embrace.

Matthew would bring hell to Alfred's tribe before he lost his love.

“When?” He growled, a little rougher than he meant to.

“Tomorrow by dawn.”

Alfred was not the first person to have fallen through the thin ice on the lake; but he was the first Matthew dove in after. Hundreds of bodies lay in the lake bottom, stuck there for eternity in hunting gear or summer wear, or in the case of unfortunate lovers- nothing at all. Left to rot in the cold water as Matthew stood to the side, aware of the souls sinking down.

Matthew couldn't bear to watch the brave little boy dressed in blue suffer their fate all those years ago. Couldn't fathom watching the boy slip under the ice and the blue of his eyes fading until he was unrecognizable from the watery depths.

He wouldn't let anything take Alfred from him; Nature or human.

“Stay.” Matthew breathed, tilting Alfred's chin up to his own.

Alfred blinked. “Stay?”

“Stay with me, Alfred,” Matthew pleaded, sounding winded, “Here.”

He adjusted to lean on his elbows, looking down at Alfred's face. He shifted and let his legs slip between Alfred's, spreading Alfred's legs around his hips.

“What do you mean?” Alfred asked, brushing his hands against Matthew's cheeks. He wiped away a single tear, one that broke free as more welled in Matthew's eyes.

“Stay with me, be with me,” Matthew kisses Alfred's lips, “Forever.”

Alfred opened his lips for Matthew and let him kiss him into silence. He was warm and receptive even though he could feel drops running off Matthew's face into his own.

“Please?” Matthew muttered against Alfred's lips, his weight against Alfred's whole body. He was a God, groveling for a human- “Please, Alfred, stay?”

He twisted his head so he could kiss at the scar along Alfred's jaw and down to his throat, tugging at the skin with his teeth in various degrees of want. His cheeks were damp and he smeared his tears into Alfred's skin, trying to not let his breathing get heavy and shaky.

Jumping into a lake to save Alfred he could do just fine, Alfred's free will didn't matter in that moment. But now, even as a God, it wasn't right forcing Alfred's choice to fit his own selfish wants-

“I've never wanted to leave.” Alfred replied. “I've waited for you for forever, Matthew, nearly sacrificed myself to the cold for you year after year,”

Matthew was no longer sure that the dampness on his cheeks were just his tears.

“Please let me stay with you forever, my Matthew.”

Matthew didn't explicitly say yes, but he did show all his love to Alfred well into the night, the next day, and every evening after that.

Alfred never did meet the southern prince. 


End file.
